During manufacture of a structure, such as an aircraft or a component thereof, various contaminants must often be removed from a surface of the structure. It is desirable to partially automate such cleaning to reduce cost and manufacturing lead-time. However, space constraints, in many instances imposed by the geometry of the structure or the surface, make partially automating the cleaning process difficult. For example, a cleaning device may need to clean a surface, located in a confined space within the structure, such as inside an airplane wing box that, at the tip, is only several inches deep. Additionally, when manually cleaning the surface, exposure to fumes, for example, generated by cleaning fluids and/or other chemicals, often requires the use of bulky and expensive safety equipment.